Condo project proposed for vacant land in National City moves forward

Courtesy of National City

The City Council in National City allowed a 29-unit condominium project to move forward. The condos will be clustered in a total of eight buildings in a gated community on East 16th Street near L Avenue.

The City Council in National City allowed a 29-unit condominium project to move forward. The condos will be clustered in a total of eight buildings in a gated community on East 16th Street near L Avenue. (Courtesy of National City)

City leaders in National City cleared the way last week for a 29-unit condominium project to be built on nine lots that have been vacant for almost 20 years.

The City Council allowed the project to move forward on Feb. 5, approving changes to land-use and zoning specifications to allow for the density of the project. The council voted 3-1, with Councilman Jerry Cano opposed.

The action marked a key step for a project that will require additional stamps of approval from state and federal agencies, which will review plans to mitigate construction impacts to vegetation on the site.

Known as City Village, the project will include 29 three-bedroom condos clustered in a total of eight two- and three-story buildings in a gated community on East 16th Street near L Avenue. Most homes will include a garage with space for one or two vehicles.

Open space will include walkways and trellises with seating areas.

The 1.7-acre site is bounded on the north by the eastern side of South Bay Plaza and on the east by the rear of the National School District administrative office and bus yard.

The land has been vacant since 2000, when the former owner successfully appealed to the city to subdivide it into nine lots. The idea was to build a house on each lot, but the costs squelched the preliminary plans.

The lots were sold three years ago.

In the works for about two years, the condo project came before the City Council with the seal of approval from the Planning Commission and city staff, who depicted the land as “prime for development” and said the condos will expand the city’s housing options.

Developers told the City Council that the market will determine whether the units will be up for sale or rent.

In weighing the project, city staff took into account the makeup of the area and determined the project will not significantly disrupt the character of the surrounding neighborhoods, which include houses on large lots to the west and a mix of medium- to high-density properties to the south, across East 16th Street.

While the council pushed forward with the project, the approval came with a stipulation to address a traffic safety concern.

The concern raised by the council was tied to the notion that drivers going west on East 16th Street in front of the condominium complex — on a downward hill — will have an obstructed line of sight that could cause a crash when residents drive out of the gated community.

In response to the concern, the developers agreed to look into the potential issue and possible solutions, perhaps a median or signage that restricts left-hand turns from the driveway of the gated community onto East 16th Street.

“If we can address those left-turn issues, that would go a long way for me,” Councilman Ron Morrison said.

Other conditions also lie ahead of the project.

In particular, some of the grasslands and San Diego ambrosia — a sensitive plant species — on the site must be preserved. A mitigation plan must be sent to the state Department of Fish and Wildlife for review and approval.

Developers must also mitigate impacts to an on-site drainage that is considered a wetland — a condition that will require state and federal permits from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board and Department of Fish and Wildlife.